Facebook buys WhatsApp: The Cost of Social Media

WhatsApp?

You normally wait until your 16^th Birthday to do something outrageous. In brief, the 10 Year-Old Facebook has bought WhatsApp - an app that allows youngsters to LOL at each other - for some $16 to $19 billion dollars. OK, ‘only’ $4 Billion in cash, but it’s enough to live on. We look at what is in store for social media, digital marketing and business.

What does this mean … for Facebook

Well, that was a whopper of a deal.  Facebook needs growth and presence in emerging markets. WhatsApp has half a Billion users. This will allow them to capture the younger social media generation that they have been missing out on, adopt some technology and, of course, head off a major competitor at the pass.

It’s a tricky move taking out your competition. It can horrendously expensive when they are in a strong position, which WhatsApp are. Much of this deal is in equity so the true cost can be argued is far less. Facebook will be worth so much more by swiping market share so by diluting its stock its probably in a decent position overall - albeit letting any new start-up App Team that they too could have a SuperYacht if they are any good.

One thing is for sure, Instagram will be kicking themselves. In 2012 they sold to Facebook for an eye-watering $1Billion at the time.  Which might not be enough to live on or at least the Yacht will be smaller.

Where does this leave Facebook?

This is a very interesting year for the giant of social media. Floated in 2012 for something along the lines of the total GDP of Sweden (we don’t know, we’ve just made that up. It was probably more) the stakes are very high now.

Far from being the jeans-wearing, Starbucks waving and skateboard-in-the-office entrepreneurs of freedom, connectivity and sharing the landscape of social media now is big business.

On the surface Facebook is still great place to post about your life, complain, complain about people complaining or just read about people complaining about people complaining. It’s easy to knock it (“I’m on it but I never GO on it”) but in truth it’s really very good.

Yes, there are more Sponsored messages, more Suggested Pages and the news feeds act funny at times but its underneath is where things are changing.

What does it mean for business?

To get noticed and sell your stuff you had the old school advertising media of TV, Radio, print and the High Street. Each is its own way of getting in front of buyer traffic. These have all been getting slaughtered by the internet for quite some time now.  

Google was the biggest disrupter.  My iPad is now bigger than my Yellow Pages which is a sign of the times. But soon Google began to line us all up every month to pay dues to the SEO guys just to point a bit of the internet jet stream at their business.

Then along came Facebook. It was a superb antidote to the costs of all of the above. Set up a page. Stick on some funny pictures and away you go! There are pages on Facebook that serve no purpose whatsoever with literally millions of followers. Hurray! Goodbye SEO, goodbye 30 second adds. Suddenly marketing became easy. Everyone could do it.

Not so much anymore. Things are changing. No one is quite sure but check the blogosphere of Social Media guru’s and you will see declarations and wailings of foul and unfair play by Facebook, its search, its feeds, its algorithms. It’s what? Basically it’s changed how it works.

You could always sponsor and advertise on Facebook. See here. I’ve set up an advert on Facebook to profile maybe you. If you use a PC those panels to the right that you never click on? The thing was, you never really needed to. You post something, you Like it, your friends see it, they like it and your content moved….

Now Viral has caught a Virus. To move that content, the Bloggers argue, you need to pay to play. Pages are seeing their “reaches” are being strangled by upto a half or even more. Fair enough. But the above page is for a Community Group

But something was up. It was suspected as much. Ken Auletta in his 2010 book “Googled” noted how Google's initial business plan for search was to bounce you off their page as quick as they could. Whereas Facebook wants to keep you within their world for as long as possible - you can be “on” Facebook but not really “on” Google. Now they have built their captive market they are perhaps looking to cash in. And they will need to if this $19 Billion deal is anything to go buy. The cost of advertising is probably only likely to increase.

So, what does this mean for Social Media?

The pole has got greasier again. Facebook is by far the most dominant platform but easy and cheap virility has gotten harder. It’s kind of a good thing as plenty of trash content will die away. Watch out for lots and lots of sharing scams (Share our page to win a Car…House….Unicorn…).

What should you do as a business? Well, its sign to go back to good honest traditional marketing. The pursuit of Likes, Followers and Hits is all well and good but in the end it’s not replacement for real engagement, community-led ideas and a social purpose.  Social Media is still incredibly important but it’s so much more than “Post and Hope”. 

We suggest:

Diversify - Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. When you play in someone else’s sandbox, expect them to change the rules

Professionalise yourself – Linkedin is a great place for this and it’s astounding how few companies have not set up a Company Page for people to follow. Even if you are a one-man band you can create a page, feature products, post messages. “People don’t like to be shop where they socialise” and isn’t it true you are in a different mood when you are on Linkedin and receptive to plugging and boast posts?

Blogging – gets your personality across, your knowledge and builds credibility.

Engage on Twitter – Its OK Tweeting about yourself, but will it get results? You will notice everyone is Tweeting about themselves and sometimes when people are trying to be heard no-one stops to listen. How about engaging? What do we mean? See an event that somebody is up to. Retweet it, attend it and follow up your new contacts. Its a listeners market. We guarantee you will be further ahead as a business than if you didn’t. Or your money back.

Create your own community – forums, networks, semiars, workshops, meetings. It can all help.

Mobile apps – mobile is screeching past PC use. Cut through all the noise and park yourself right next to Candy Crush and Talking Tom on everyone’s most prized possession.

Use Professionals – the cream always rises to the top and top agencies can help. There are plenty of people professing to know about the Black Magic of SEO and all that so take recommendations. And stop sharing pictures of Cats to get people to like you.

Measure - track your success and investment in terms of revenue. Always.

See this great Infogram for more ideas.

Finally...

Well, we see this as a natural progression. Platforms become fun and then fun becomes media and media attracts the money men.

There is clearly a demand for viral platforms. And clearly people and business prefer them to be free. This year might be year where Facebook Mark II is born.

Anyway, we all had the last laugh.

Mark Zuckerberg paig $19 Billion for WhatsApp.

We downloaded it for free.

10 Reasons For Your Business to have a Mobile App

The smart phone and tablet market is huge - over a billion handsets are in operation around the world and its growing, very fast.

In every coffee shop, street, train or at a gig you will see dozens of people totally absorbed in these little devices.

Game Changers

It’s changing the way that people engage with their world. The traditional model of people sitting at home or at work with a PC or Laptop and a large screen is rapidly changing. Mobile is gobbling up market share and its already about 35% of all web traffic. PC isn’t going away, but its domination is being challenged, and fast.

On these devices are ‘Apps’. Mobile Applications are little computer programmes that integrate with the features on the phone. Games (Angry Birds, Candy Crush), Social Media (Facebook, Twitter), Photo App’s (Instagram) are the big categories. And the market is worth £Billion’s.

 

So what does this mean for business?

There is an incredible opportunity. In almost every pocket of exactly the kind of people you want to target is a mobile phone that you can put your App on.

The trouble is that traditionally the cost of development has been way beyond the budget of most businesses. 

Opportunity

Pockit World is changing that concept. We can develop a mobile app’s for your business and it can be for about the same price as a small one-off media campaign, leaflet campaign or website launch.

But it’s not right for everyone. You have to be careful not to treat your customers like walking Classified Ad’s. You need to interact and engage your user base with your brand, promotions and useful information that they will be happy to give up a little bit of space on their most cherished gadget.

ANY business could have an app developed for it. However, the App will flourish in some markets over others. so here we feature the Top 10 reasons that will help you decide if your business needs to join the mobile world. You don’t have to check all 10, even 1 will do. Have a read….

1.       Loyalty 

 

Plenty of businesses have repeat visitors, members, students, subscribers, fans. This frequent engagement makes an app a very useful tool to use for bookings, advertising availability and getting bums on seats. The list is huge. Bars, Clubs, Gyms, Restaurants, Schools, Sports Teams, Churches, Cinema’s, Theatres, Garages, Shopping Centres, Visitor Attractions and Theme Parks, Taxi’s firms, Crèches, Spa’s, Hair and Beauty Salons, Therapists Doctors, Bands, Museums…..

2.       Promotions

 

Offers, discounts and promotions are fantastic content for an app. “Happy Hour”, “10% off ", “Early Bird”. Think about it - you are a restaurant sending a promotion out on a slow Tuesday afternoon just about the time people are making their meal decisions for the evening. An app is perfect for Advance Bookings, Reservations, when prices change quickly (Currency Exchange for example) then the app can engage much faster than a passive website as it is so quick to change and send out a Message alert.

3.       Members

 

For a brand that promotes itself on behalf of third parties an app is a great way to give added value and it is a fantastic extra promotional tool with an eager and ready-made audience! Associations, Unions, Events, Sports Clubs, Exhibitions, Conferences, City Guides, Festivals, Shopping Centres and Business Networking Events all want to engage users on behalf of their members or clients. Often these brands that can attract advertising partners and sponsors onto their platform to make the project zero cost which is a huge added bonus.

Exhibitions, Events, Festivals are great for Mobile App's

4.       Competition

 

Does your business have a lot of competition amongst peers? A busy marketplace for plenty of professions may have you struggling to get noticed amongst the crowd. A mobile would do just that. Search for "Personal Trainer Leeds" on the app store. In early 2014 there was just one result – for our app! Use your app with enquiry forms, Social Media, camera, event and Messaging functions to create a buzz about your brand. Estate Agents and Lettings, Recruitment, Financial, Legal services could all benefit. In the Leisure sector restaurants, bars, clubs, venues, theatres can all have plenty of good fun and interaction with their customers.

5.       Leader

 

In every sector there are brands with a vision, enlightenment and they stand out with how they present themselves and their services. Catching the wave of mobile ahead of the pack would add so much value to that. Mobile is extremely current, fresh and, dare we say, Zeitgeist.

6.       Social

 

A brand that is active on social media channels, in its community and market and can promote the app to its audience will ensure the app is a fantastic addition to its tools. Not only will you have the experience and the savvy but also the people to make it happen. Events, festivals, bands, football clubs have ready-made engagement waiting to happen. Bars frequented by students, popular venues, attractions can all take advantage. On the other hand you will also know how quickly a Tweet can fall down people’s feeds, how slow it can be to build up followers and how hard Facebook is making it to “reach” people without paid assistance.  With an app you can put on content that each customer, visitor and fan is going to need to download and you can break that barrier between you and your users in a way that websites, Social Media and print advertising just can’t. 

7.       Demographic

 

Smartphone use is more almost everywhere but the habit of downloading an app and using it is going to be in the younger rather than the older side of life. Think about your customers and how they behave but don’t underestimate - there are plenty of perfectly capable Silver Surfers out there!

8.       Events

 

Its simple. If you have regular events, schedules, line-ups, workshops, meetings, seminars, gigs, shows, fixtures……an app is a perfect platform to use to communicate directly with your users. Integrate your event directly with the phone's calendar and you are away!

 

9.       Temporary 

 

We love to create “Disposable” Apps! Let us explain…

Its the first day after arriving at a new hotel or resort and you've just put the suncream on when your better half says “Can you pop to reception to find out what time the Kid’s Club starts?” Some of these places are huge and they have just the one notice board which means you clock up a few miles in your flip-flops. They also probably have Free Wifi. This is a wasted opportunity. 

Beyond the Hotel, Resort or Campsite there are loads of times when you go somewhere and need to access lots of information in a short space of time. After you leave you can delete the app. Festivals, Exhibitions, Launches, Conferences, City Guides, Attractions, Theme Parks, Museums, Shopping Centres, Tourist Information, it’s a huge list. In the past the cost of building an app made the idea of a temporary one too painful. Now it’s easy, and a very good idea.

10.   Image

 

The final factor to have an app for your business is that we think it’s pretty cool. That could sound weak, it’s got to have a purpose right? Well, we think that 1-9 have covered all that. We think that after enormous investments in staff, premises, machinery, equipment, software and everything else you deserve to be on the Apple and Android app stores, on people phones and engaging with your customers beyond the barriers of websites, Twitter and email.  

So there you have it, that about covers it for us. Plenty of businesses can take advantage and flourish with a mobile app. What do you think? 

Pockit World
www.pockitworld.com

Leave a comment, drop by and follow us on Twitter @PockitWorld or send us an email to theteam@pockitworld.com

Is your business mobile friendly?

You may have noticed that mobile devices are a pretty big deal nowadays. Almost everybody has got one. Even my mother-in-law. 

Numbers

The stats are staggering. More than one iPad is sold every second; there are more iPhones sold every day than there are babies born and over 1 Billion Android devices will be shipped in 2014.

With 10 million apps downloaded per hour at peak times of the day, the mobile market is growing at an amazing rate.

They say 35% of all the time spent online is on a mobile device.

So how much of your time have you spent to make sure your business marketing has adapted to this fast-changing market?

Is your business mobile-friendly?

 

Website

Maybe you have spent a lot of time on your site to get it just right for that larger PC screen experience. But what about smartphones and tablets? Have you tested your site from a device for speed, is it responsive and optimised from a mobile perspective?

Does the content work? Small images, plenty of text, busy homepages and small Hyperlinks instead of clear app-like buttons will put off mobile users faster than you can say Low Battery.  

Of course let's not forget about the pouring of money into the black magic of SEO - only for Google to change the rule. Better join google+ then.....

 

Social Media

This is a no-brainer for mobile. The titans of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram give us fabulous open platforms to present your business, your brand, your ideas and promotions. Its free. Its just hard work getting that page going, collecting followers, thinking of something new to say and does it translate into the most important thing - sales, reservations, bookings?

I saw a popular local pub/restaurant tweeting a promotion last week giving its customers 40% off its food bill on the night they were showing live football. A great promotion. The problem with your social network feeds however is that your great message can sink really quick as the minutes tick by. How many people really saw and took notice of that post? Nevertheless they are a great step forward. You only have to see how small the Yellow Pages is nowadays to see how things have changed.

 

Mobile Apps

An app is a little computer programme downloaded from the app stores that sits on your phone, integrates with its features and get carried around everywhere your customers go.

 

Historically they were a small fortune to produce so it was the preserve of your mega-platforms such as Facebook, uber-brands, banks and the clever chaps at Candy Crush. 

"Great idea, but I'm just a theatre / bar / restaurant and I don't have a spare kidney to sell" you say.

No problem, we say.

That's why Pockit World exists. We design, build and publish mobile apps for business, events, festivals, bands. We do it because we love it and we want your business to succeed. We are affordable.

If you can give someone enough reasons to justify 5MB of smartphone real estate then you have just jumped right into the forefront of the digital marketing race. You can post messages and have those lovely, irresistible red notifications sat in the pockets of your customers, publish events, promotions, loyalty schemes .... lots more.

Please see www.pockitworld.com for more information.

This is our first Blog post and we look forward to many more sharing our thoughts, market trends and other fun bits we come across most weeks. Thanks for reading.

Oh and finally.....

....a personal plea. If your are a bricks and mortar establishment. Cafe, bar, hotel, retailer where people spend time - make sure you've got Free Wifi. After oxygen my friend, people want nothing more.

Be that guy!